TJ Cienki
East Greenwich, RI
Class of 2011
How did you become interested and involved in Presidential Classroom?
Initially, I became interested in the Presidential Classroom program after hearing about it from my father. After conducting my own research, I discovered that the program was originally founded by President Kennedy in the 1960 to help cultivate the leaders of tomorrow by students in the tenth, eleventh, and twelfth grades who surpass the requirements the opportunity to observe the vital role the United States government holds in key issues directly affiliated with scientific research and the ever-changing world of technology. I knew this was too good of an opportunity to squander.
What did you do during your week in Washington?
The primary objective of the Presidential Classroom program was to illustrate the often downtrodden world of politics in an innovative and engaging manner. Students, hailing from nineteen diverse countries, debated many pressing issues on the international platform. In addition to this, we attended seminars held by various top-notch professionals who have surmounted any adversity and have risen to the pinnacle of their respective fields. One of the most interesting seminars was conducted by Lon Levin, the founder of XM Radio. In conjunction with seminars and debates, we devoured all that Washington had to offer by visiting all the monuments, museums and sites, including the NASA Goddard Space Facility and an Army Field facility where I was privileged to gain an insight on up and coming military technology. On Thursday night, the Smithsonian Institution closed the Natural History museum at 5:30 in the evening and graciously invited all 250 Presidential Scholars to a dinner and allowed my fellow classmates and me to tour the museum until night’s end. Perhaps one of the most memorable events that transpired during my week was my trip to Capitol Hill, during which I attended individualized conferences with Rhode Island’s very own Senators Reed and Whitehouse and was fortunate enough to become acquainted with Prime Minister Gordon Brown (England) during a Capitol Hill Senate Press Conference. It was one of the most educationally stimulating, fulfilling, enriching weeks of my life. By week’s end, I was exhausted (in a good way)!
What was it like meeting the Prime Minister of England? What did he say to you?
I was inexplicably grateful and honored to meet with Prime Minister Gordon Brown. He has spent the duration of his life cultivating integrity, honesty and compassion so that politics can thrive in his home country and on a global arena. Even though I do not hold the prestige that is affiliated with serving as an elected official, Mr. Brown treated me with a personal, individual attention which reaffirmed his unique character trait of genuinely possessing a deeply rooted care for those around him and more importantly, the citizens of the world. Upon parting, he shared extremely valuable sentiments with me, which is to “Never, never, never, give up.”
Are you interested in a career in politics?
I have always been fascinated by the world of politics and all that is applied to better preserve American Democracy. Currently, I am not preparing on pursing a career in the realm of politics, but the future is always questionable, and one can never really assert something that is so uncertain. Regardless of vocation or occupation, I believe it is the right and responsibility of all citizens to actively engage themselves in politics by formulating their opinions, rallying for intrinsic causes, and not squandering the very special privilege of voting during every election. Democracy is team effort. We must all strive to become interdependent in certain respects and not squander our unique opportunities that the generations before us have so valiantly fought for.
What was it like being selected to give the farewell speech? What did you say?
I was deeply touched and moved upon being selected to present the commencement speech. I was surrounded by a collective, cohesive community of a wide array of bright, articulate, passionate kids and the mere thought that they entrusted me with the farewell speech was flattering. Starting out, I thanked all those who graciously volunteered their time form their hectic schedules to make Presidential Classroom such a rewarding experience. In sum, I essentially expressed my sentiments of engaging yourself in a group of committed individuals to look towards erecting positive change in our world and empowering others. I also told my fellow classmates to look towards the leaders in our everyday lives and to consistently reinvent, dream, achieve, and empathize. Given those traits, I preached, we could overcome any insurmountable obstacles that make our contemporaries buckle under pressure. At the end, I basically told my peers to not fret about faux-pas and to strive towards their unreachable star.